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Friday, October 24, 2014

Halloween: FARE Teal Pumpkin Project

[Photo taken with the Canon and edited in lightroom]

I remember when my sister discovered that my nephew Noah had a nut allergy. After eating some cookies a neighbor had made, he complained that the cookies "hurt" him. She thought he was joking at first until she realized he was having an allergic reaction to the nuts in the cookies. Now, she always carries an epi pen around in case he accidentally eats something that contains nuts. It's tough being a kid with a food allergy! Being a parent of a child with a food allergy is just as rough, especially during Halloween when all sorts of treats and candies are handed out.

[Photo taken on my iphone 6 and edited in VSCO]

This Halloween, FARE (Food Allergy Research & Education) is starting a new tradition called the Teal Pumpkin Project. FARE is encouraging families to paint a teal pumpkin to leave on their porch as a sign that non-food treats are available at your home. This is a fantastic idea not just for kids with food allergies but for kids with diabetes (an issue that is near and dear to my heart) and kids who can't eat food coloring. Instead of buying a giant bag of candy to hand out, consider buying some Halloween toys in bulk from Amazon or The Oriental Trading Company. Who needs all that extra candy laying around after Halloween is over anyway? If you do end up with candy that you can't consume, consider the Halloween Candy Buy Back program and send the treats to troops overseas.

To learn more about the Teal Pumpkin Project, visit http://www.foodallergy.org/teal-pumpkin-project. I'm going to print out a couple of extra flyers to post around my neighborhood to get the word out.

Ready to paint your teal pumpkin? This project cost me less than $5 (including the pumpkin). Here's what you will need.

Teal Pumpkin Project

Materials

Martha Stewart Crafts Acrylic Craft Paint in "Mermaid Teal"

Paintbrush

Pumpkin

Paint pen (I used silver but I think white would have used better) or Sharpie

Instructions

Paint pumpkin with two coats of paint. Let paint try and write #tealpumpkinproject on it with the paint pen. Put the pumpkin in front of your house with the Teal Pumpkin Project poster. **Whatever you do, do NOT tape anything to the pumpkin. The paint peels off easily and you will be mad when you have to repaint the pumpkin. Just saying...

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